Yi People
Yi is an ethnic group of Austroasiatic origin living largely in the mountains of southwest China and speaking a Tibeto-Burman language. The Yi people numbered more than 9.8 million in 2020.¹ When the people of China were classified into fifty-six minzu (ethnicities) in the late 1950s, the term Yi, a previously seldom used term, replaced the formerly more common Luoluo, considered extremely pejorative.² They mainly live in the provinces of Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, and in small numbers in Guangxi.³
Yi is an ethnic group of Austroasiatic origin living largely in the mountains of southwest China and speaking a Tibeto-Burman language. The Yi people numbered more than 9.8 million in 2020.¹ When the people of China were classified into fifty-six minzu (ethnicities) in the late 1950s, the term Yi, a previously seldom used term, replaced the formerly more common Luoluo, considered extremely pejorative.² They mainly live in the provinces of Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, and in small numbers in Guangxi.³
1 China Statistical Yearbook 2020, Beijing: China Statistics Press.
2 Harrel, Stevan. 1990. ‘Ethnicity, Local Interests, and the State: Yi Communities in Southwest China’, Comparative Studies in Society and History, 32(3): 515-548.
3 Guoyu, Fang 1984. Draft history of the Yi. Kunming: Yunnan Minzu Press.
Mayou
Mayou village (马游村), Yao’an County (姚安县), Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture (楚雄州), Yunnan Province (云南省). Mayou has a population of 2,223, of whom 95% are Yi. Located among several high mountains, this village is home to two nationally recognized Yi intangible cultural heritage bearers in Meige (梅葛) and Hulusheng (葫芦笙), respectively. Meige is the general name for the Yi’s comprehensive music tradition, including folk songs, dance and oral literature, all of which may be sung to the Meige tune family. The Hulusheng is one of the oldest versions of the Asian free-reed mouth organ, and dates back c.2,500 years. The Yi language is one of very few ethnic languages preserved both in oral and written forms in China, dating back to over 6,000 years.
马游村隶属于云南省楚雄彝族自治州的姚安县，全村共有2,223人，其中95%为彝族。马游村坐落于数座高山之间，村内有两位分别在梅葛和葫芦笙领域造诣颇深的国家级非物质文化遗产传承人。梅葛是彝族综合性音乐传统的通称，包括民歌、舞蹈和口头文学，所有关于彝族的史诗故事都可以通过‘梅葛’调吟唱出来。葫芦笙是亚洲自由簧口风琴最古老的版本之一，可追溯至约2,500年前。彝语是中国为数不多的在口头和书面两种形式上都得以保存的民族语言，其历史可追溯至6,000多年前。
Meige
The “Meige” is a creation epic of the Yi people, passed down in Yao’an, Dayao, and other Yi areas in Chuxiong Prefecture of Yunnan Province. The term “Meige” originates from the Yi language, originally the name of a Yi folk tune. As this tune is used to sing the Yi creation history, people have thus named this creation epic “Meige”. The entire epic of “Meige” can be divided into four major parts according to its content: “Creation”, “Making of Things”, “Marriage and Love Songs”, and “Funerals”. The “Meige” tune is further divided into two categories: “Chi Meige” and “Fu Meige”. The melody of “Chi Meige” is comparatively sorrowful, melancholic, and deep, and the epic’s fourth part, “Funerals”, is sung in this tune; while “Fu Meige” has a more gentle and lyrical melody, and the rest of the epic is chanted in this tune. The “Meige” is categorized by the age of the performers into four types: “Elder Meige,” “Middle-aged Meige,” “Youth Meige,” and “Baby Meige.”
The Yi people revere Meige as the cultural ‘genealogy’ and ‘encyclopedia’. The content of Meige is all-encompassing. It not only reflects the Yi ancestors’ worldview and rich imagination of the universe in ancient times but also mirrors the evolution and development of the Yi people’s production and life; it reflects the Yi people’s customs of love, marriage, funerals, kinship, and farewells, as well as the close economic and cultural relationships between the Yi and other fraternal ethnic groups. The creation myths of Meige are universal; they represent the ideology of humanity in the primitive era, possessing significant historical value and certain literary worth.
In July 2006, the Meige Cultural Protection Area of the Yi people in Mayou Village, Yao’an County, which is the birthplace of Meige, was included in the first batch of intangible cultural heritage protection list by the People’s Government of Yunnan Province. In June 2008, the Yi Meige was listed in the second batch of the national intangible cultural heritage protection list by the State Council.
《梅葛》是彝族的一部长篇史诗，流传在云南省楚雄州的姚安、大姚等彝族地区。 “梅葛”一术语源于彝语,本为一种彝族歌调的名称，由于采用这种调子来唱彝族的创世史，因而人们将这部创世史诗称为《梅葛》。《梅葛》全诗按内容可分为“创世” 、 “造物” 、 “婚事和恋歌” 、“丧葬” 四大部分。“梅葛”调又分“赤梅葛”和“辅梅葛”两大类。“赤梅葛”的曲调比较悲楚、忧伤、低沉，史诗的第四部“丧葬”就采用这种曲调；“辅梅葛”的曲调较为婉转抒情，史诗的其他几部唱诵时就采用这种曲调。《梅葛》按照演唱者的年龄可分为”老年梅葛”、 “中年梅葛”、 “青年梅葛”、 “娃娃梅葛”四种类型。
《梅葛》被彝家人奉为彝族的文化“根谱”和“百科全书”。《梅葛》的内容包罗万象。它既反映了彝族先民在远古时代的世界观和对宇宙万物的丰富想象，也反映了彝族人民生产生活的演变与发展过程；既反映了彝族人民恋爱、婚姻、丧事、怀亲、送别等生活习俗，也反映了彝族与其他兄弟民族在经济、文化上的亲密关系。《梅葛》的创世神话具有世界性，它是人类原始时期的意识形态，具有重要的历史价值和一定的文学价值。
2006年7月，梅葛的发源地–姚安县马游村彝族梅葛文化保护区被云南省人民政府列入第一批非物质文化遗产保护名录，2008年6月彝族梅葛被国务院列入第二批国家级非物质文化遗产保护名录。
ECura’s Visit to Meige Inheritors
In early June 2024, ECura’s postdoctoral researcher Dr. Jin Dai visited the Qingshuihe village in Yao’an County, Chuxiong Prefecture, Yunnan Province. There, she met with Yuke Lu and Yongcai Zhou, two provincial-level inheritors of Meige. In the courtyard of Lu’s home, the two inheritors performed classic Meige tunes in a male-female duet. Their performance included ‘The god Gezi created the heaven and the earth’, ‘Xianghuo Tune’, ‘Farewell Tune’, and ‘Celebration Tune’, showcasing their profound musical skills and deep appreciation for traditional culture. Lu Yuke and Zhou Yongcai are local Yi villagers from Qingshuihe who primarily engage in farming. From a young age, they began learning and singing Meige from their elders. They have frequently participated in recording sessions organized by Yi community leader Guo Xiaowei and his Meige studio, making significant contributions to the preservation and promotion of Meige culture.
2024年6月初，ECura项目组的博后研究员戴进在云南省楚雄州姚安县清水河村拜访了“梅葛”的州级传承人鲁玉科和周永彩。在鲁玉科家的庭院中，两位传承人对唱了经典的梅葛曲调，包括《格兹天神造天地》、《相伙调》、《离别调》和《喜庆调》，展现了他们深厚的音乐功底和对传统文化的热爱。鲁玉科和周永彩都是清水河村的彝族村民，平时务农。从年轻时起，他们就开始向父辈学习并传唱梅葛，多次参与了社区负责人郭晓炜及其梅葛坊团队的录音采集工作，为传承梅葛文化做出了重要贡献。